Growing Black-Eyed Susan Vine: A Complete Profile
By Growing Home Greens Team · August 20, 2026
Black-eyed Susan vine shares a common name with a plant it is not related to, and the confusion is worth clearing up first.
Two different black-eyed Susans
Our black-eyed Susan is Rudbeckia, an upright perennial daisy. This is Thunbergia alata, a twining tropical vine. Both have a dark centre in an orange-yellow flower, and that is the extent of the relationship.
It needs something to twine around
NC State Extension describes it as a twining vine that does best with support near an arbour, trellis or fence. Twining matters: it wraps around a support rather than gripping it, so netting, string or thin uprights work and a solid post does not.
It runs three to eight feet, occasionally more in a long warm season.
Slow in July, good in September
The toolbox notes it blooms best after the hottest part of summer passes. A plant that looks unremarkable in midsummer is usually just early rather than failing, and pulling it in July is a common mistake.
Start it indoors about six weeks before the last frost and set it out two weeks after; it will not tolerate cold soil. It is perennial only in zones 10 and 11, so nearly everyone grows it as an annual.
Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, Thunbergia alata.
Companion planting guide for Black-Eyed Susan Vine · Find your planting dates
Typically viable in USDA zones 3-11. Not sure your zone? Look it up by ZIP code.
Method: Start indoors: Start indoors from seed, then transplant outside. Black-Eyed Susan Vine needs a head start most zones can't give it by direct-sowing alone.
See exact start-indoors, direct-sow, and harvest dates for your zone →
How many Black-Eyed Susan Vine plants fit per square foot?
Spacing: 1 per square foot (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 3-8 ft.
Where to buy black-eyed susan vine seeds
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See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing black-eyed susan vine" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Black-Eyed Susan Vine: A twining annual vine that flowers best after the peak of summer has passed, and no relation to Rudbeckia.
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